As messed up as it might be, I can’t see myself staying away from Stephanie.
She might have moved on from me, but I can’t walk away so easily—not now that I’ve found her.
I need answers.
Maybe I don’t deserve them, but I want them all the same, and if she won’t give them to me, perhaps her little boy will give me some insight into the years of her life I’ve been missing.
“See ya!” Jackson calls over his shoulder as he races back inside.
Watching him go breaks my heart into a thousand fresh pieces, each sharp edge cutting me from the inside as I watch the life we could have had from outside their window.
Once upon a time, that was everything I thought we’d wanted—a sweet little family in an idyllic little home.
Stephanie never wanted the money and prestige that came with dating someone from my family.
If anything, she brought me down a few pegs, made me more humble when I was too full of myself because I bore the name Chiaroscuro.
She taught me the beauty in the simple things, the joy that could be found in everyday life.
She always talked about wishing I would leave the Mafia behind. And after she was taken by my family’s enemies, I wondered if she thought it best to do so without me—because vanishing from my life would keep her safe.
Maybe she thought I would try to convince her to stay.
It wouldn’t have been the first time.
But I would have done anything—agreed to anything—if only it meant I could have her back. I still would.
Stepping back into the shadows, I watch through her window a bit longer as Stephanie carries a casserole dish to the small dining room table, where Jackson’s already sitting.
He bounces giddily in his chair, his excitement radiating from him, and the sweet scene tugs at my heartstrings.
Then my heart stops as Stephanie’s striking green gaze snaps in my direction, and for a split second, our eyes meet.
I know I’m hidden from view, but still, I jerk back instinctively, pressing my shoulder blades into the side of her townhome to ensure I’m completely out of sight.
I shouldn’t have come here.
I’m an intruder peeping in on their personal lives.
But morals seem so insignificant compared to my need to see her.
The desire to touch her—to feel with my own two hands that she’s a real, living person—is what finally drives me back a step.
Because I know without a doubt that if I broke into her home, that would be crossing a line I couldn’t come back from.
Stephanie chose to remove me from her life for a reason.
And while I can’t understand it, I can respect it—to a point.
I’ll try to keep my distance.
But I can’t stay away entirely.
5
JANE
“So, tell me about your day,” I say, settling into the chair across from Jackson as I take his plate and serve him a generous portion of macaroni.
